It is ignorant of the past and present, and lacks understanding of Yin and Yang.
Jiang Xi looked up at the sky at a 45-degree angle. It was still those eight words. She hesitated and said, "Grandma, is there anything new? Every time I ask you, it's the same eight words. You never explain anything."
Du Rongzhen rocked in her rocking chair and said slowly, "I'm just saying this, this doesn't connect the past and present, it doesn't have yin and yang, there's another line after this."
"Within the six directions, draw upon the power of all things to cover the bloodline of the Du family."
Upon hearing the last sentence, Jiang Xi, dressed in black, raised an eyebrow and suddenly perked up.
The power of all things? That's interesting.
The old lady said, "If outsiders saw this, they would definitely think that our mother and child bells are an evil thing, involving yin and yang and all things, but in fact they are just a talisman left by our ancestors."
"This is not connected to the past or the present, and there is no Yin or Yang. It means that the bell cannot go back to the past, nor can it predict the future. There is no such thing as supernatural forces or ghosts. I don't know if it existed in the past, but it was gone by your grandmother's generation."
"This 'within the six directions' comes from the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic, referring to the space between heaven and earth, and the universe."
"To draw upon the power of all things to protect the Du family bloodline means to use the power of heaven and earth to protect the Du family bloodline, that is, the descendants of the Du family... cough cough."
Jiang Xi quickly poured the old lady a glass of water and asked curiously, "Wow, it's that powerful! What exactly is this Power of All Things?"
Du Rongzhen took a sip of water and said, "Who knows what it is? So many years have passed, and we don't even know how many battles have been fought."
"Your great-grandfather, the only one who knew a little about the inside story, also passed away more than forty years ago. He died suddenly and didn't leave anything behind."
Jiang Xi, dressed in black, looked unconvinced and solemnly said to the old lady, "Grandma, although I am a materialist, I believe in anything if it's true. You don't need to hide it from me."
Du Rongzhen shook her fan and said, "I really don't know. No one knows the inner workings of this world anymore. I only know that the power of all things is limited. As many as have been passed down from generation to generation, there are only a few of these mother and child bells left. As far as I know, in our lineage, only your grandmother has a pair left."
She glanced at Jiang Xi with utter disdain and said, "And yet, you gave the bell away."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xi, dressed in black, quickly massaged the old woman's arm, being extremely attentive: "Oh dear, you can't say that, old lady. Isn't Lingling also a member of the Du family? Giving her to her or giving her to me makes no difference."
Du Rongzhen patted her again and said, "How can there be no difference? Do you think anyone is qualified to catch the bell's fate? Although it saved her life, who knows if she can withstand the bell? The bell is inherently weak, and she has already used it once."
"The plane crash ten years ago was probably fatal. Even if she was lucky enough to survive thanks to the protection of the bell, that little bit of power was only enough to keep her alive."
"Grandma, what does 'leaving a breath of life' mean? Does it mean being disabled?"
Seeing her stubbornness, Du Rongzhen sighed: "It would be lucky if she were just disabled. I'm afraid she would lose her mind and hang there half-dead."
"Her life should have ended long ago. When she received the bell, there was no mother bell to guide her, so she could not escape her destined fate."
Jiang Xi, who was watching from the sidelines, thought about the days Du Ling spent in the forest. The old lady was right; she had indeed lost her mind and just sat there blankly all day.
Without this bell, Du Ling would have long since turned to dust, dying in the plane crash like those other passengers.
Then she realized something was wrong, but Du Ling had already recovered. How had she recovered?
What Du Rongzhen said next shocked her even more.
Du Rongzhen added, "I think Du Ling is in deep trouble. At best, she will be disabled and childless; at worst, she will become mentally impaired."
Jiang Xi, dressed in black, muttered, "Whether or not he has any offspring is a minor matter. The real problem is if he really becomes an idiot. Grandma can enter your dreams, so why can't you sense any news about her?"
Upon hearing this, Du Rongzhen opened her eyes, her cloudy vitreous body staring at the mottled, withered leaves on the tree. After a long while, she said, "Xiao Xi, Grandma is getting old, and there are some things her body can't handle. She can't even enter the Bell Dream anymore."
"The ability to enter a dream is closely related to the energy of the bell's owner. If the owner is weak, let alone entering a dream, even wearing the bell will be a burden."
"When your great-grandfather gave it to me, he said that these mother and child bells should be taken by close relatives, one of each. If the bloodline is distant, the power will be dispersed, and the original ten parts of power will only be five parts."
She sighed and said, "When I gave you the baby bell, your bloodline was close to mine, and I could still protect you to some extent with the power of the mother bell."
Du Rongzhen said with self-reproach, "It's also my fault for not explaining the seriousness of this matter to you earlier."
Jiang Xi, dressed in black, pursed her lips: "How can you blame Grandma? Grandma did nothing wrong. She just wanted to protect me, and I just wanted to protect Du Ling."
Du Rongzhen said, "Fate is fickle."
She sighed and said, "I know you want Grandma to live a few more years. You think that this bell on me will protect me more. But birth, aging, sickness and death are inevitable. Even if you force yourself to live, how long can you last?"
"Moreover, this bell will become weaker as my body weakens. If you take it, it might save her life. But when my time comes, this bell will become nothing but scrap metal and go to my grave with me."
She gently patted her granddaughter's hand and said, "Xiao Xi, try to think more positively."
"The sooner we take the bell back, the sooner things will turn around. I'm getting old now and can't handle the bell's luck anymore. I can't sleep well every night."
“You think you’re doing this for my own good, but Grandma doesn’t think so. I also want to live a peaceful life in the next few years. Otherwise, if I really go down with the bell, Grandma will feel ashamed of you, Great-Grandpa.”
At this point, Jiang Xi, dressed in black, opened her eyes wide, looked up at the sky, sniffed for a while, and nodded.
Du Rongzhen helped her sit up: "Alright, it's no big deal. Pack your things, go buy some yellow paper and some snacks, and let the ancestors know tonight so you can take the bell away."
Jiang Xi, dressed in black, nodded, wiped her face as she turned around, quickly put on her helmet, and asked, "Any requests for the snacks? Where's the yellow paper?" Her voice was not as strong as before, and had a nasal tone.
Du Rongzhen thought for a moment and said, "We need three to five kinds of snacks, such as walnut shortbread and cloud cake. You can decide what to buy. Buy an odd number, buy less, even our ancestors can't finish them all."
Then he added, "Go to Old Zhang's place at the west alley entrance to buy the yellow paper. Just tell him that Du Rongzhen wants it, and pack it the usual way. Also, have him bring a bundle of incense. He knows all this. Just tell him and he'll arrange it for you."
"good."
Just as she was about to leave, Du Rongzhen called her back: "Wait a minute, I'll get you the money."
Jiang Xi, dressed in black, walked out without turning her head: "No need, I have some here." Then there was another roar.
"This child," Du Rongzhen muttered as she lay back down in the rocking chair.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com